Jasmine's Brother
by TheAnimeWriterLover
Summary: Aladdin thought that he knew everything about Jasmine, only to find out that she kept from him one 'little' secret. Jasmine has an older brother who's known, throughout the many kingdoms, for scaring away those who ask for Jasmine's hand. Now what does he do?
1. Chapter 1

**A/N 1: I have edited this story a bit, awhile ago, but not too much. Hope you guys will still enjoy this story! :)**

 **A/N 2: Please check my page and check out how often I will be updating my multi-chapter stories as well as the polls that I might have up and running depending on when you're going to read this. Happy reading everyone! :)**

It was a beautiful day in Agrabah. The heat of the sun hit the sand kingdom harshly, but not to the point that it was impossible to head outside. The marketplace was crowded as always, being populated by people from the youngest to the oldest. The people of the kingdom took up as much space as possible just to move around, but it wasn't too bad. After all, barely any personal bubbles were invaded except for those few occasions when a stranger bumped into another.

All in all, the marketplace was eventful as always.

Well, more eventful compare to what the Sultan had to go through back at the palace. The old wise man looked very tired as he looked down at the table in front of him, which was covered with papers and documents. He watched as a scroll became unbalanced among the mountain of papers and tumbled to the ground with silence. The ruler sighed softly. _I'm getting too old for this_ , he thought tiredly. He may act all happy and energetic around other people, but, truthfully, age had caught up to him long ago. To put it simply, the Sultan was ready to step down and let somebody else take over the kingdom. However, that person needs to be an heir, which was no problem. He knew _exactly_ who would fit the bill to the letter. Unfortunately, the said heir wasn't at the palace at the moment but somewhere else. The old man wondered when he would return. After all, it had been almost a year. Surely, he would be done by now with his business.

The Sultan was brought back to the real world when he heard a knock on the door of his study. He said loudly with a fake beam smile to cover how tired he looked:

"Come in!"

The door opened and a young man walked in, dressed in light coloured travelling clothes. He held something in his left hand that looked like a foreign letter. The stranger bowed before the ruler then announced in a clear, booming voice:

"I've come with a letter from the prince."

At hearing that, the Sultan beamed with true happiness this time around. He quickly got off his chair and walked over then took the scroll from the messenger's out stretched hand. Once he took it, he made his way back to his table. Once he sat down in a comfortable position, he opened the letter to read it. The first thing that caught his attention was how short the message was. Not bothered by it one bit, as he knew that his heir was always like with his letters, he began to read quietly:

 _Dear father_

 _I'm on my way home at the moment. I should be there in a few days. Expect my arrival._

 _Also, I'm bringing a friend of mine. So please have someone prepare a room for him._

 _Your son,_

 _Harith._

At the bottom there was the royal stamp, proving that it was indeed from his eldest child, Harith. The Sultan was so happy for several reasons, but mostly to know that his son was all right and should be home soon. The old man dismissed the messenger before he walked off towards the outdoors where he was sure his youngest child was at the moment. The walk was a quiet event. The servants and guards that the old man met along the way all bowed to him waist deep before they made their way to do their individual jobs. Truthfully, it was nice that the palace was quiet. The Sultan almost drank the silence, because he knew that the peace wouldn't last for too long. With chaos took place nearly every day, one would always treasure the rare silence whenever it appeared.

The old ruler was snapped out of his mind when he noticed that he reached the gardens. Soon, he found his only daughter, Jasmine.

The Sultan wasn't that surprised where she was to tell you the truth. Since the days before Aladdin first appeared and many men came for the young woman's hand, she always sat at the garden where the bird cages were located. Even now, when his soon to be son-in-law was gone for the day, she was here to occupy herself. However, the Sultan very much doubt that even the garden would occupy her interest for long before she decided to go after her fiancée somehow, someway, just to check on him or to join in on his adventures. Well, she was lucky then, wasn't she? The Sultan was certain that her would-be-boredom would disappear once she learned the news of her brother's return.

It took Jasmine a few seconds to realize that her father was approaching her. She greeted him with a smile once he was close enough:

"Father, I thought you would stay in your study for the rest of the day."

"Ah, no," He started to protest awkwardly, but knew it was of no use. It would have been the outcome if not for the letter. Instead, he beamed happily as he announced, "Guess what? Your brother is coming home!"

Jasmine looked up at her father from her seat at the fountain with wide brown eyes. She slowly started to look worried, which quickly turned to panic. The Sultan looked down at her confused for a moment before he realized something. He asked with hesitation:

"Jasmine, my dear, you _did_ tell Aladdin about your brother, correct?" He wasn't given an answer. The old man's eyes narrowed with great displeasure. He loved his daughter very much, but he forgot how… different she was sometimes from other women. In other words, adventurous and trying to avoid anything and everything that she could if possible. He voiced his unhappiness, " _Please_ tell me you told him."

"N-Not exactly"

Jasmine mumbled with embarrassment. She looked away as she refused to meet her father's eyes. The Sultan closed his eyes. He took a deep breath then exhaled. He repeated the routine for a few minutes, as he knew it was of no use to knock some sense into the woman with his mind scattered all over the place. This was not good- not good _at all_. Even though many kingdoms, including his own, knew of his son, the heir _never_ went outside the walls. Harith didn't go even when he was given permission. The young man always had something to do in the royal palace, especially when it came to his studies that would help him when he would take over the throne. The only people that had met him outside the guards and workers of the palace were the princes or kings, whom looked for his younger sister's hand in marriage. Let's just say that the men royals had the great… displeasure to meet him once the eldest son had found out about their plans.

The _out of sight, out of mind_ saying was very much put into this situation. The people of the kingdom always seemed to forget about their prince as a result.

Well, the Sultan couldn't blame them. His son, if not busy with his royal studies, was always away. Yes, the old man remembered how it all started very well. Ever since the ruler adopted Harith when he was a small child, he was able to do strange things that only the traitorous Jafar could comprehend. Unfortunately, not even the man could help in the matter, as he stated that the magic that he knew was different from Harith's. It was only once the heir turned 11 that a woman by the name of Rowena Ravenclaw came to the palace and explained to the family that the prince was indeed different because he was a wizard. Harith and Jafar had magic, that was true, but they were different kinds that needed their own individual handling. After a lot of talk and debates, it was finally decided that young Harith would go to a school in the far west, to an island called Scotland to a school that went by the name of Hogwarts.

Every year since then, Harith went for most of the year then return for a few months then head back to the school to repeat it. It had been a few years since his son graduated from the school, but decided to continue to go there since he was the apprentice of Lady Ravenclaw and wanted to learn as much from her as possible before he would take over the throne. This year was final, because the current Sultan put his foot down. The old man was very proud of his son. Don't take it the wrong way. After all, the young man had accomplished many things by being in Scotland, but Harith was an heir to a whole kingdom. The young man couldn't stay miles and miles away from Agrabah when the people needed their new ruler to be close by, especially when it was time for him to be crowned as the new Sultan.

The Sultan finally decided. He commanded his daughter:

"When Aladdin returns, you _will_ tell him about your brother."

"F-Father y-you can't be serious-"

Jasmine got up to protest, but the man wouldn't hear another word. He turned his back to her and said with a serious tone that left no more room for argument:

"It's final. If you don't tell him, then I'm afraid that you won't be left with a fiancée by the end of the week."

Without another word, the Sultan left.

-ooOOoo-

It was dark outside. Jasmine stood in her balcony as she tried to figure out a way to bring up the subject of her brother to her lover. This issue had been on her mind since the beginning of the afternoon, after the talk with her father. The thought of her brother made her both angry and frustrated. Why? Why couldn't Harith stay away for just a little while? He could have stayed in that special school of his for a few more months, since the wedding was planned to take place this upcoming month. Now, due to his sudden return, the idiot would chase Aladdin away and she would be left with no one, _again_.

Jasmine just couldn't take it anymore.

Ever since she hit puberty, men from all kinds of kingdoms came for her hand. Her older brother always chased them away. Never had he seen a suitable man that was worthy of her heart. Not even those men that she fell in love with would he hand her over. It frustrated her so much that she literally screamed at him and locked herself in her room for weeks until she finally couldn't take the loneliness anymore and got out.

How much she loved her brother but hated him at the same time nobody could fathom.

Still, why did her brother go out of his way to chase away all those men?

Jasmine never bothered to ask him and she was pretty sure that she never would.

Jasmine was snapped out of her mind when she saw somebody familiar riding on something in the sky. She smiled brightly at the sight of her fiancée, Aladdin. The man waved at her, but just when she was about to return the gesture she froze. Slowly, she withdrew her hand, almost afraid that something bad would happen just by that one innocent gesture. She watched quietly as her lover landed on her balcony. Her heart hammered against her chest, so much that she swore it could simply jump out of her ribcage. Her hands played together nervously, their surface was covered with a very thin layer of sweat.

Jasmine didn't know where to start off.

The princess was all of a sudden pulled into her ex-thief's arms. She was about to be given a kiss, but she placed her fingers on his lips to stop him. He looked down at her in confusion. The black headed woman looked around them for a quick second. Satisfied that they weren't overheard, she spoke slowly and softly:

"Aladdin, I-I need to tell you something."

"What is it?"

Aladdin asked as he pulled away from her a bit just enough that he gave her room to breathe. His eyebrows knitted together closely with his lips straightened into a flat line. Jasmine's smile tilted upwards in a wobbly manner, her eyes barely met his. She admitted:

"Aladdin, I wasn't honest with you about something." She inhaled shakily before she continued, "I have an older brother."

The man raised an eyebrow at what she said. He replied with confusion:

"Alright, how is that a problem?"

"You don't understand. My brother isn't someone to be taken lightly."

"I still don't understand."

Aladdin commented with a blank look. What was so different about her brother that he was kept a secret from him at the palace? _Now that I think about it, I haven't heard anything about the prince for a very long time._ The thief thought with a mental frown. He had completely forgotten that Agrabah even had a prince until his fiancée mentioned him. Jasmine felt a migraine start to form from the overwhelm feelings. How was she supposed to explain this properly to him? She tried for a second time:

"Aladdin, he's known for chasing away every man that asks for my hand in marriage. I-If he's angered he can do _horrible_ things, to the point that many ran out of the palace or begged for mercy or _both_. _Please,_ " At this point, Jasmine moved closer to the man to rest her hands on his chest. Her brown eyes looked at him with worrisome. "I'm begging you. Be careful."

Aladdin's thick eyebrows shot upwards nearly hiding behind his hair. He didn't remember anything about princes or kings that ran away from the palace pathetically. Although… _didn't the old men at the market place always laughed over something about somebody being chased away from the palace?_ It was really hard for the man to remember, as he was always too busy with something more important: Survival. The ex-thief didn't know what he thought about what he heard. On one hand, he had a feeling that maybe, just maybe, he should be careful. On the other hand, was he expected to impress the prince or something so that he would accept their soon-to-be marriage? When Aladdin looked into Jasmine's brown eyes, he could do nothing else but nod with agreement. He voiced:

"I promise."


	2. Chapter 2

For the past few days, the whole palace was livelier than ever before. Many people ran around to get things ready. Their chatters were heard all over the place. All that was spoken about in the great palace was of the prince's return. In responds to it all, Aladdin wasn't sure what to do except stare at everybody with bewilderment. What was so special about the heir that made everybody in the palace so excited and happy? That thought came about when he caught an odd sight of a lot of female servants whispering and giggle among themselves whenever the prince's name came up. After he caught them doing it a few times, Aladdin brought it up with his fiancée to get some answers. In responds, she rolled her eyes, told him not to worry about it then muttered something to herself that he didn't catch.

By the end of the third day, everybody was on their guards and looked ready to run towards the entrance for when the prince showed up. A little after lunch, the trumpets were heard loudly throughout the palace, announcing Prince Harith's return. Aladdin was with Jasmine and his future father-in-law at the throne room when they heard it. Almost all of the servants and guards showed up, though they hid very poorly if the sight of slightly cracked doors had anything to say about it. The ex-thief almost face palmed at their poor hiding skills.

The Sultan shouted with excitement:

"He's here!"

"I wonder how much he changed."

Jasmine commented with a small smile. After all, a year could change a person, even if it was a little bit. Aladdin's lips thinned into a line. His arms crossed over his chest as he looked over towards the front doors that opened slowly. Two figures merged from the outdoors, but the sunlight blinded their features. The trio heard one of the figures, a man they guessed due to the deep voice, voiced with clear amusements:

"I thought that you were joking about your welcoming committee."

"Laugh anymore and I'm going to hex you to the next century."

The other figure, also a man, grumbled. His responds only made the other man cough, as if he tried his best to hold back something, probably his laughter.

Finally, as the men walked further in, their figures started to form shapes and colours. In revelation, the two male individuals looked like they were in their early 20's and quite different from the norm.

One of them was a tall man that stood at the height of 6' 1'', which was taller than usual. The man had long straight black hair, which reached to his mid back but nothing held it in place. His high class traveling clothes showed a muscular but lean figure. He had one earring that was pierced into his left ear, and a red feather (that reminded Aladdin of blood) hung from a long chain. This caused the feather to brush against his shoulder in an almost teasing manner. The fancy outfit paled in comparison with two other things: The man's eyes and his scar. The scar was shaped into a lightning format, which was very strange since Aladdin had never seen such a thing before. Of course, the ex-thief saw a fair amount of scars during his days as a street rat, but none of them had a particular shape. The eyes, though, reminded the soon-to-be prince of emeralds that he saw in the market place every now and then. Aladdin never knew a human being have such unique eye color. He wondered if there were any more people out there with such eyes.

The man that stood next to the first one was tall too, but was short by 2 inches. He had long blond hair that reached the mid of his back. It was held together in a low ponytail by a blue ribbon. The hair hid the ears quite a bit, except for the ear lobes, which were pierced by aquamarine stone earrings. He wore white foreign clothes, but Aladdin didn't know of where the garments were from since he never left Agrabah. He wasn't very build like the other, as far as the clothes would let the ex-thief view, but due to his slim form, speed was definitely on his side. His eyes weren't as bright and interesting as the other man's was, but the blue pair held such wisdom and power that Aladdin had never seen a person held before.

During Aladdin's observation, he hadn't noticed that his fiancée and soon-to-be father-in-law had left his side to go greet the strangers.

"Harith, welcome back!"

Jasmine exclaimed with happiness, though there was a tone of nervousness underneath it. She wrapped her arms around the black headed man's waist and hugged him in a sisterly manner. The man, Harith, chuckled deeply. He returned the hug gladly. He said to the duo:

"Father, Jasmine, I want you to meet my best friend, Niall Lovegood." As he spoke, he waved his hand towards the blond whom gave a small bow. "He's a fellow wizard that studied with me during our school years and under the same teacher, Lady Ravenclaw." He turned towards his friend, "Niall, these are my father and younger sister, Jasmine, that I've told you about."

"Your Majesty, your Highness, it's a pleasure to finally meet you. Harith speaks highly of you two."

The blond, Niall, replied with a polite but mysterious smile. Jasmine unraveled her arms from her brother and stood in front of his best friend. She told him kindly:

"It's nice to meet you, Niall, but just call me Jasmine."

"As you wish… Jasmine."

Niall took one of her hands to place a kiss on the back of it. Aladdin threw to him a glare. He wasn't the only one.

"Niall, are you trying to flirt with my sister?"

Harith almost growled at his best friend. The blond only returned a grin that suggested nothing but everything at the same time. He replied calmly:

"Of course not, but I won't lie, your sister is quite beautiful."

The heir and ex-thief narrowed their eyes, but the former shook his head. Why did Harith bother being protective when it came with this guy? Niall had a lover back in Scotland waiting for his return. He was an honourable man, so there was nothing to worry about, unlike with the other men. His emerald eyes then landed on Aladdin, whom he finally taken notice of. Once more, his eyes narrowed, but in suspicion more than anything. He asked in a bit of a rude manner towards the oblivious individual:

"Who are you?"

The man that he addressed almost jumped a few feet into the air. Harith looked the man up and down, and noticed that he wore a commoner's clothing. _What is a commoner doing here?_ Harith thought with a frown. He had nothing against the commoners. In fact, he _respects_ them quite a bit. However, it was _extremely_ rare when one was at the palace whom wasn't a worker. The stranger stood with his head held high, but from the slight sweat to the side of his forehead it indicated to the heir that he was intimidated a bit. _Impressive_ , the heir thought.

"Harith, I want you to meet Aladdin, my… my fiancée."

Jasmine told her older brother with hesitation and courage at the same time.

The whole room's temperature dropped down in a startling rate. Nobody bothered to notice that the doors cracked a bit more open, as the people behind the doors tried to see how their prince would react to this one. Harith asked in a slow cold tone:

"Did you say fiancée?" All his sister did was a respond with a short nod. He looked from Aladdin and towards her then continued, "We'll talk about this later, but at the moment we have a guest. What kind of a host would I be if I don't show him to his room?"

"Of course, of course, you two had a long journey. Go get some rest and I'll send a servant up to you for dinner. The room that we prepared for your friend is right next to yours."

The Sultan, for the first time, spoke but with no fear but rather with calmness. His son nodded then led his best friend away, but not before he sent one last dark look towards Aladdin before he exited through the door.

Aladdin finally let himself breathe, his shoulders heaved down heavily as if a boulder was placed upon them. He walked over to the father and daughter while he spoke to his lover with a bit of shakiness in his voice:

"I thought you were exaggerating about him being scary."

"I'm sorry Aladdin for his behaviour, but as long as you be yourself and don't back down you'll be fine."

Jasmine replied gently. Her eyes soften at the sight of the slightly frightened man. She pulled his hand into hers and suggested:

"Do you want to go flying?"

"That sounds like a good idea."

Aladdin mumbled as he left with the princess, leaving behind the Sultan. The Sultan sighed. He shook his head at what he saw for the last couple of minutes. He wasn't surprised at his son's reaction. The boy was very protective over his sister, especially when it came to suitors. Not that he could blame Harith, since he too did not wish to hand his daughter to just anyone with a too high of a chance of her being thrown into a harem. However, this situation was different, as his son would soon learn. Aladdin was a good man and would take care of Jasmine and treat her well.

Now, all that was left was for his son to find out the hard way (if it came down to it). Once he figures it out, the father knew that his heir would allow Aladdin to take his place in taking care of the princess. At least, the Sultan hoped so.


	3. Chapter 3

The day came to a close. It was almost dinner and Harith was with his father at the moment at the royal study. His sister gave his best friend a tour of the palace, to which he was very thankful for because he had some business to take care of and had no time to do the tour personally. The son looked at his father from across the table. He went straight to the point:

"So, is everything almost ready for the ceremony?"

"Yes, it shouldn't be too long until everything is ready." His father started. He sent a worried look towards his son and heir to the throne. He spoke softly, "Please don't do anything reckless in the meantime."

"Father, trouble finds me, I don't look for it."

The emerald eyed male stated with an annoyed frown. Why was it that everybody thought that he looked for trouble? It wasn't as if he liked the situations that he found himself in all the time. The reply caused the Sultan to chuckle wholeheartedly.

"I know son, but still be careful. Last thing I want is for you to get into trouble right before the day."

"I know, I know, give me a break."

The atmosphere then turned into nothing but silence. It was not that of awkwardness, but that of familiarity. It reminded Harith of the past, when he was younger and would usually be found in his father's study with a scroll next to him to study from or a toy to play with. It was nostalgic, to the level that brought a hollow feeling to the prince's heart. It was hard to look back on those days and realize that he had missed out on much, since he was taken to Hogwarts and barely saw his family since then apart from those few months.

The Sultan was the one who broke that ancient silence, but not with a good topic in Harith's mind.

"Harith, son, I wish for you to give Jasmine's fiancée a chance. He's a good man. He's nothing like the others."

The black headed man frowned deeper than before. He knitted his eyebrows as a thought passed through his mind.

"Father, that's something I wish to ask of you about. Why did you not tell me about the engagement and that Jasmine's fiancée was a street rat?"

"I thought that Jasmine wrote to you about that, so I didn't mention anything." The Sultan paused in realization. He asked, "Where in the world did you hear that Aladdin was a street rat?"

The old ruler couldn't figure it out. After all, neither he nor his daughter has said a word about Aladdin's past to the prince. That made him worried. Was Harith going to break the marriage over something like this? As if Harith read his mind, his son explained:

"I've been hearing around the palace about that, especially from the guards. Do you really think that I care that he was a street rat? Have you forgotten about my past?"

The sultan's shoulders eased down. How could he have forgotten about it? He said softly to his son:

"No! Of course not, I'm just hoping that you won't look down on him." The old man sighed. "Look, just try and get to know Aladdin. Jasmine loves him dearly. I don't wish for them to part ways just because of a disapproval."

"It is not up to me to approve of him or not. It is up to this Aladdin."

-ooOOoo-

Dinner has finally arrived. Let us just say that it was… interesting.

Oh, who was Harith kidding? Dinner was chaotic. There was a genie and a monkey running around. Okay, first things first, somebody clearly forgot to mention to the prince and his guest that there was a _genie_ running around. He could take the monkey, which made a whole lot more sense compare to his sister's _tiger_ and his magical companion. However, a _genie_ of all things just crossed the line. Where in the world had Aladdin found this genie? To make things worse, his best friend Niall started to put crazy ideas into his father's head. Oh, did Harith mention that he just found out that Jafar was turned into a genie and thrown somewhere into the desert where anybody could discover him and unleash his wrath upon the known world? No? Well, there you have it.

Harith nearly groaned and buried his face into his hands, but he had enough control to not do such things. Still, what was worse: The blue genie that tried to make everything funny, Jafar being turned into a genie or Niall messing with his father's mind? None, because his patience had started to thin out due to one thing, one _person_ \- Aladdin. That guy tried _way_ too hard to be on his good side. It was one thing being genuinely nice, but it was another matter completely when that person had his guard up around him every second that they were in the presence of each other.

Come on! Harith hasn't even bitten his head off yet.

Let's just say, it was a _long_ , **_long_** , **_long_** dinner service, one that couldn't end soon enough in Harith's mind.

"Nargles are thieves and the only way to get rid of them is to wear-"

"Niall, for the love of anybody that is up there, _please_ stop putting ideas into my father's head!"

Harith snapped as he glared at his best friend. The blond man stared at the green eyed individual with his blue amused pair. He said innocently:

"You know Harith. You should really help me get rid of the wrackspurt that's in your head. It makes your brain go all fuzzy."

"One move and I swear I'll cut off both of your legs."

The Scottish pouted at the threat and gave a mock of hurt. His left hand was on his heart as he said dramatically:

"Oh, woe me; my best friend wants to kill me."

Harith ignored the guy in favor to munch on an apple. A melody like laughter was heard from the other side of the table. The prince didn't even bother to look, since he knew that it was his sister. What in the world was she laughing about he had no idea.

"Now, now, no need for any violence at the table."

The Sultan said as he chuckled himself at the sight in front of him.

"Of course, your majesty."

Niall said smoothly, his blue eyes twinkled with innocence. Without anybody's notice he jabbed his elbow into the prince's side, making the black headed male nearly choke on his apple. The blond man ignored the eyes of death that were shot towards his direction and continued with his meal.

Yes, dinner couldn't end soon enough.

-ooOOoo-

Harith was in his room late at night. He sat down on the large amount of pillows in the corner of his bedchamber as he played with his Arabic knife by swirling and twirling it around in his hand. His eyes looked rather unfocused as he thought about many things but nothing at the same time. The room was cool since the windows to the balcony were wide open, to let in the cold Arabian night. The full moon's moonlight invited itself in as it gave the only source of light inside the dark room.

Harith's head lulled from side to side before it finally settled on his right shoulder. His emerald of eyes stared at his companion, whom was nothing more than the mythical creature that he thought about earlier during dinner, a phoenix. This phoenix was different from the ones that he grew up learning about. The ones he learned about were gold as the sand. This one was as white as the snow that he saw at Scotland. The white hue almost made the frozen water look gray, much like the unicorn that he encountered one time in class. The mythical creature stared back with her sharp golden eyes. She seemed to have given him a small nod of acknowledgement before returning to her slumber.

One may wonder how Harith got himself a phoenix, one that so happened to be his familiar. To tell you the truth, he had no idea. It was on the day that he walked into the store to get himself a bird of some kind to use as a messenger, back in first year. The moment he laid his eyes on her for the first time something clicked into place. That was the best way he could explain it. Funny enough, he had never used her as a messenger. She was a fussy little thing that would rather peck at his head for a whole day rather than deliver a letter. Not that it mattered to Harith. The phoenix was his companion for quite a few years alongside Niall. He wasn't about to question the circumstances since he got two dear friends out of it.

"Sleep well, Akilah."

Harith murmured softly as he turned his eyes towards the window.

All of a sudden, two soft but quick knocks were placed upon his bedroom's door. The black headed man stared at the door in wonder, as he tried to figure out who it was since, as far as he knew, everybody was in bed. Harith got up. He placed his knife on a nightstand on the way to the door. Once he opened the iron door, his eyes widened slightly when he saw his sister stood there in front of him in her nightclothes.

"Jasmine-"

The prince begun to question her, but he was cut off by the princess.

"Can I come in?"

A thin black eyebrow rose almost to his hair at the interruption, but he didn't deny her entrance. Once she walked in, he closed the door and settled down beside her on the edge of his bed. Harith asked with success this time:

"What's the matter?"

The only times that Jasmine came to his room at such hour was whenever something bothered her. It first took place after their mother's death. Afterwards, it gradually became frequent that she came to his bedroom for comfort, which he gladly gave while she returned the comfort in her own unique way. That was how it was whenever one or the other was upset or needed some sort of comfort. However... the last time she had done such a thing was right before he went to Hogwarts. What changed?

"I don't understand."

Jasmine began bluntly and so out of nowhere that it nearly startled her brother. She grabbed one of his pillows and curled around it.

"What don't you understand?"

Harith asked with patience along with curiosity.

"Why did you chase all of those princes and kings away? Why do you want to chase Aladdin away?"

The prince gave no reply. Instead, he stared at his confused younger sister for long moments. Her big brown eyes stared straight at him, as they, mostly likely, searched in his eyes for answers. Slowly, he raised his hand to push a strain of black hair out of her face. Finally, he muttered slowly:

"You really want to know?"

"Yes!"

Jasmine quickly replied.

"I'm protecting you."

A moment of silence took place before the princess uttered unintelligently:

"Huh?"

"Jasmine, you have to understand something." Harith began seriously. "You have more freedom than most women I've met. In society today, women are expected to keep their mouths shut and be a good little housewife that look after the children. They barely have any freedom. You, on the other hand, are allowed to study many things like reading and writing, which is far more than other women are allowed to. You are also allowed to voice your thoughts, which could get you executed or worst in some places that I've visited. You are allowed to choose a husband, which is nearly unheard of. This is already pushing the society's limit, especially in that of royalty. Father has pulled so many strings that there could be uproar in the world of royalty and society any day now. The only reason it hasn't occurred yet is because father agreed to have you married before your 17th birthday."

He paused for a few seconds to gather his thoughts and let the information sink into his sister's head.

"Father could have simply made you into any other pretty little princess. He could have made an arrange marriage in a snap of a finger between you and somebody else to get it over with. But he didn't. You know why? It's because he loves you and wants you to grow into a wonderful young woman and not into a puppet like many other women out there, especially princesses. That's also what I want out of you. I can't accept those sorry excuses of men that come into our palace for your hand in marriage when they have at the very least 2 wives each back home. I refuse to let you fall into this trap and watch you die on the inside as time goes by."

Jasmine stared at her older brother in complete silence. She hugged the pillow closer to her than before. She would lie if she said that she wasn't shaken up by this information. So much has been held back from her. She thought that it was normal for a princess like her to exist. To learn that it wasn't so... it shocked her. However, Jasmine still knew one thing and that was about the harem. The black headed teenager just hoped that some of the guys she had a crush on weren't like the rest. Her brother wouldn't lie to her about something like this, so the chances of those same guys being just like every other suiter was high. Truthfully, Jasmine felt sorry for the women that were forced to marry those men. It was then that a sudden thought came to mind. She quickly said:

"Aladdin is nothing like that! He really loves me!"

Harith gave her a stern look at her statement.

"I don't know about this Aladdin guy, but I'm going to make it clear right here and now. If he makes one wrong move like the others I'll chase him off too."

The way that he said it, the tone in his voice that said it was final, it made Jasmine all nervous. She knew her fiancée very well, and she knew for a fact that he wasn't that sort of a guy. She had confidence that Harith won't chase him away, but still... sometimes Aladdin was... careless. Maybe she should have both Aladdin and Harith actually talk to each other and get to know one another. It would certainly make the situation better.

"He makes you happy doesn't he?"

Harith asked, snapping Jasmine out of her thoughts. The princess looked up at her brother, whom stared down at her with a very serious look on his face. The question finally sunk in, which made the female smile happily and in such a way that it was clear to the man that she was deeply in love. She said softly:

"I'm very happy with him."

It was then that her older brother did something that he hadn't done for a very, very long time. He rested his hand on her head and ruffled her hair. Jasmine yelped at the sudden action as she clawed his hand off of her hair. She petted her hair to try to return some sort of shape to it. The pout that she sent him made Harith chuckle deeply in amusements. He leaned over to place a kiss her forehead in a brotherly manner.

"Go to sleep, it's late."

"I will, but I expected you to be in bed too."

Jasmine said sternly like a mother to a child who wouldn't do as he or she was told. Harith rolled his eyes.

"Fine, I'll go to bed."

"Good!" With that, Jasmine got up. She put down the pillow onto the bed, or more like threw it, before she headed out the door. She had a lot of thinking to do. The princess said over her shoulder, "Good night, Harith."

"Good night, Jasmine."

The siblings gave each other one last smile before Jasmine shut the door behind her.

Once more, the room fell into silence.

Harith got up slowly. He made his way to the balcony, only to stop right in between the two open doors. His shadow lengthened dramatically behind him underneath the bright moonlight. His emerald eyes stared up at the man in moon. His shoulders eased downwards a bit in sadness. A soft melody was heard from the inside. All of a sudden, a small weight was put onto his left shoulder. Harith looked at his phoenix friend whom stared down at him with a questionable look. He stroked the soft feathers gently while he murmured in a soft but sad voice:

"I can't tell her or anybody else. If it's meant to happen, then so be it."

Akilah looked down at her human with sad golden eyes. She nudged her head into his in hopes to give him comfort. The man closed his eyes and rests his forehead onto her head. One lone tear came out from the corner of his eye, ran down his cheek and hit the cold stone floor. Akilah shed her own tear, for the future that awaited this young man.


	4. Chapter 4

**Important A/N:** **This chapter is going to escalate quickly. Beware of blood and violence. You have been warned.**

 _What the hell just happened?_

That was the first thing that came to Harith's mind. Not even a second ago he sat in the garden with his best friend, both talked about this and that, nothing too important really, when all of a sudden his sister grabbed him by the back of the collar only to drag him all around the palace! What was that about? Well, one thing for sure- no! _Two_ things for sure:

One, he was stuck in the same room with _Aladdin_ , of all people!

Two, his sister was _strong_! Where did she get the ability- _genie_! Why did Harith even bother to ask? Either that or she worked out without his knowledge... or anybody else's for that matter. He would have found the surprised looks of the servants and guards funny, if he wasn't too busy being the source of the stares.

 _Slam!_

"I had it enough with you two! Talk this out and _then_ you can come out."

Jasmine shouted from the other side of the closed door.

-ooOOoo-

"Jasmine dear, are you sure that this is a good idea?"

Jasmine's father asked his daughter with great worrisome. He tried to hide the look of scepticism from his face. Did she really believe that Harith would grow to like Aladdin if she did something like that? It was hard enough to get the duo in the same room without them acting all weird. He looked over at the door. He could only imagine what his son would do to poor Aladdin now that they were alone. Beforehand, it wasn't too bad, as the two men were with others in the same room. This, however, was unpredictable which caused more than worrisome come from the old man's heart. He just hoped that his son wouldn't kill the poor guy.

Jasmine scoffed, her arms crossed over her chest in pure stubbornness and anger.

"I'm so sick of those two avoiding each other! They need to learn to get along since Aladdin will be part of our family in a week. Anyways, Harith isn't going to kill Aladdin!"

Unfortunately for her, four other individuals thought differently and those were: Genie, the flying carpet, Abu and Iago. None of them bothered to hide their worrisome and scepticism. Well, that was the former three. The last one, Iago, was too busy making plans for Aladdin's funeral in a loud voice.

Jasmine slowly turned to stare at Iago with a fierce glare that would have made anyone squeak in their spot in pure fear. The parrot wasn't phase at all. Instead, he looked at her with a confused expression.

"What? It's not my fault that you threw your boyfriend into death's reincarnation's claws."

Niall finally caught up to the group that crowded in front of the locked room. He held a look of knowing as he stared at the door. He knew that once the two walked out of there, that things were about to change between Aladdin and Harith, _forever_.

-ooOOoo-

What… the… hell?

Harith slowly turned to the other man in the room, whom sported the same look of expression.

"She locked us in here didn't she?"

Aladdin asked with his shoulders heaved down in disbelief. The older male turned the knob that was right next to him, only for it to stop a quarter ways through.

"Looks like it"

Harith replied with an annoyed look.

There was heavy silence in the room. Neither of the men spoke a word to each other. The younger stood in the middle of the room, where he got up after his fiancée had thrown him in there. The older walked over to the small window, which gave enough view of the desert at the back of the castle but little light from the moon. His fingers drummed onto the wall next to the glass in impatience. He knew that his sister didn't stop at simply locking the door. She was anything but an idiot. That sister of his properly had the genie magically lock the knob in a way that it was impossible for a wizard to unlock. If Harith wasn't so annoyed at the moment, he would have been impressed at how throughout her plan was.

Great, now he was stuck in the same room with this _idiot_ , whom was too busy staring at him with an unnerved expression.

Harith exhaled with annoyance through his nose. Last time he even spoken about Aladdin was to his sister, in his room, three weeks ago. He didn't bother to as much as _think_ about the guy. Okay, that was a lie. Truth was that he had planned for the last few weeks multiple trials for the ex-thief to pass. If he failed more than one, Harith would have him kicked out of the palace. It was a fair deal with his father, since this was the exact same thing the prince had done to the other suitors. Back to the main topic; his lack of talking to or of Aladdin must have been what set Jasmine off so harshly. Huh. Wasn't that interesting? Harith should add that to one of the _think-it-over-whether-or-not-I-value-my-life_ list. Just to tell you, he had quite a long list of things that in one way or another related to his sister. She was scary, okay? He valued his life thank you very much.

 _You know what? I'll get this over with right now and leave._ He thought as he turned around to face the other black headed man in the room. Aladdin was slightly startled that the attention was on him now.

Aladdin wasn't sure what he thought about the prince. The heir was scary and knew how to intimidate even the toughest guard in the palace. The ex-thief gave the prince that much kudos. He wasn't exactly frightened of the man, since he had his fair share of scariness from his adventures and life as a street rat. No, Aladdin was _afraid_ of the guy. He was half afraid because of the stories that he overheard from the guards and servants about what happened to the other suitors that came for his lover's hand in marriage. The other half of his fear was that Harith was a wizard. Aladdin had just gotten rid of Jafar, the last thing that he needed was for another wizard to show up. Genie, of all people, _warned_ him about the wizard. Apparently the heir's magic came off of him like waves, which was extremely rare, from what Genie had explained. To wrap it all up with a nice ribbon, Harith just happened to be his lover's _older brother_ of all things.

Aladdin really hoped that he would be able to avoid the prince for the rest of his life, especially after his marriage with Jasmine. It appears, quite clearly, that his fiancée wasn't about to let him do that. The ex-thief caught himself from the urge to gulp when he saw those emerald, sharp eyes stared at him with this intense stare. The second Harith walked over to him slowly, he felt his heart sink into his stomach. It was when the prince stood only two feet away from him, that he spoke coldly:

"You and I have some business to settle."

"W-What would that be-?"

Aladdin stuttered unintentionally, but was cut off by an annoyed look. The taller of the two snarled with disgust:

"I'm not going to bite your head off, you moron. Stop stuttering like an idiot, stand up straight and look me _in the eyes_ when I'm talking to you!"

This time, Aladdin did gulp. He really didn't want to be on the other end of the prince's wrath, so he bit his tongue and did as he was told. He felt sweat start to form in his tanned palms from nervousness at those intense emerald eyes. All the remained courage from before pretty much flew out of the window. He turned his body to keep an eye on Harith, whom slowly circled around him, as if a tiger studied its pray before attacking it. A sneer appeared on his lips. Harith spat:

"You are my so called soon to be _brother-in-law_? The guy I'm supposed to hand over my sister to for marriage? You're nothing but a boy! Weak, pathetic, only looking out for himself-"

"I'm none of those things!"

Aladdin shouted in protest. Well, it appeared that some courage decided to return. The ex-thief took one step towards the prince, daring him to say that again. The prince took that dare by narrowing his eyes at the other man.

"Yes you are! If you aren't, then you would have walked up to me and acted like a normal, respected individual, no matter the background. Instead, you tried to dangle your genie and flying carpet in my face, as if they meant something to me. Newsflash, I don't care one bit about what you possess! Furthermore, I had to find out about your past from my _guards_ , to find out that my sister will marry a street rat-"

"It does not matter if I was a street rat or not!" Once more Aladdin shot back. He was so close to grabbing the prince in pure anger, but the only thing that stopped him was the fear of having magic used against him. He was so sick of people looking down on him because of his background. "I love Jasmine and nothing you will do can stop us from getting married! Not even my past!"

Harith raised an eyebrow with interest at the last statement. He studied the teenager for a second then chuckled deeply in amusements. Aladdin frowned in confusion.

"What are you laughing about? You think this is funny!?"

"Yes, yes I do, and you know why?" The prince asked with a bored expression. "It's because I don't care about your past. I'm the last person that you'll ever find that will care about something like where you come from."

"Huh?"

Okay, now Aladdin was dumbfounded. What in the world did the prince go on about? Why didn't he care about his past as a street rat? Aladdin felt like he was missing something big.

Harith shook his head. He harshly grabbed Aladdin's chin to force him to look into his dark, bored eyes. The younger man tried to pray his hand off of him, but the older individual only tightened his grip harsher.

"You think you're the only one that lived a life of a street rat before becoming a part of the royal family?" That question snapped Aladdin from his shocked mind. Did he... Was he... As if his mind was read, the prince let go of the chin in exchange to a small nod. A serious look replaced the dark boredom. He continued, "Yes, I was one as well, until I was adopted by my mother and father when I came into the palace. I was a lot like you, weak, pathetic, nobody to turn to. Once I've discovered my magic, which happened after I was adopted mind you, I swore to never be like my childhood self again. You see the result now." He then spoke softly, almost darkly in the end, in a whisper tone. As if the dead had risen and spoken from the shadows to haunt a person for life. "Tell me, _Aladdin_ , can you feel my power?"

Okay, _now_ Aladdin was frightened. He thought that Genie exaggerated about this man- but he wasn't! That power… it came off of Harith's body like waves that swirled around the closest individual to nearly choke them. The magic Jafar held was _nothing_ compared to the prince's. If it wasn't for the fact that Genie was the only other powerful magical being in this palace, Aladdin would have been worried for everybody's safety.

All of a sudden, everything around them turned dark. All the furniture disappeared, the walls were gone, no windows anywhere, nothing but _darkness_. It was darker than the darkest night, the harshest of blackness, and such darkness that could drive anyone insane with fear. Even those who never were afraid of its existence would whimper in fear. Aladdin turned around quickly to face Harith, to ask him what was going on, only to discover that he was gone.

Harith's creeped through the darkness:

"Tell me, Aladdin, you fought Jafar and defeated him. You saved my beloved little sister once before. But-"

All of a sudden, Harith appeared with a frightened looking Jasmine in his arms, his famous knife was up against her neck.

"Can you do it again?"

"Aladdin help me!"

Jasmine cried out in fear.

"No!"

Aladdin cried out. He ran over to save her, but it was too late. The cool metal cut through her tanned, flawless skin. Blood purred out of the wound like the river tried to escape the claws of a waterfall or the ocean. Brown eyes widened in shock at the sight in front of him. He collapsed next to his lover's dead, cold, bloody body. He shakily touched her face and flinched at the coldness that he felt. Her beautiful eyes, the ones that continued to capture his heart and breath, were now nothing more than glass as they stared at the world with an unemotional expression.

"No..." Aladdin whispered. A sob built up in his throat. "No...!" He said louder. Tears began to run down his cheeks at the sight of the dead woman he loves with all his heart. "No! I'll kill you!"

He roared in pure anger, launching at the prince mindlessly, only to have Harith disappear back into the shadows. Aladdin stumbled after he hit the darkness. He quickly got up and spun around. He looked for the man that took Jasmine away from him. His brown watery, raging eyes looked back at where he left Jasmine's body, only to discover that it was gone. Aladdin ran over, got onto his knees and patted the ground frantically, only to discover that it was dry as the weather outside.

"What-?"

He asked in great confusion. He didn't get it! Her body was right there! Where was she? Harith appeared behind him, the blood that was once on him was completely gone. He stared at the confused, broken body of the man that his sister wished to marry, and studied his behavior even further for long moments. _Maybe I should clear his conscious_ , he thought softly, happy about the result. The judgement was over. He spoke calmly:

"She was never real."

Aladdin's head snapped towards his voice.

"What do you mean she was never real?"

The shorter man asked with confusion as he slowly, but shakenly, rose to his feet. The older replied with the same tone as before:

"She was an illusion that I've created. You didn't think I would actually kill my own sister did you?"

"Why... why did you do this to me?"

"To test you"

Brown eyes looked into the green pair. The man of the brown pair voiced:

"Huh?"

The darkness slowly faded away. All the objects that once there reappeared in their respectable spots.

"Aladdin? Harith? What's going on in there?"

Jasmine's voice rang out from the other side of the door. A few knocks took place in between the questions. Aladdin's head snapped towards the doorway when he heard her voice. He collapsed onto his knees, in complete and utter relieve. _She's alive!_ That was all he could manage to register at that moment. He felt a heavy hand rest on his right shoulder. The man looked up at the wizard, whom helped him up by gently pulling onto his arm.

"Aladdin, father and I cannot always be there for Jasmine. We love her too much to leave her alone. This is why I check every suitor that walks through those doors. I was testing you to see whether or not you can protect her when neither of us are around. You have failed that one. What you haven't failed, was showing how much you care for her. That's one of the only things father and I want from her husband." He paused for a moment. Then, he continued with a more serious tone. "But don't think that I have finished testing you. Come. Let's get out of here before she does something reckless."

Harith knocked a few times on the door in responds to the questions.

"Jasmine let us out. We've talked."

-ooOOoo-

On the other side of the door, Jasmine looked up in surprise when she heard Harith's statement. She was frightened there for a moment, because it had gotten so quiet all of a sudden. She felt like something was wrong, which was why she knocked on the door in almost desperation to get some sort of a response out of them. However, when she heard _'we've talked'_ , she decided to not deny them exit. Genie undid the spell on the door.

Once that was done, she opened the door to let the two men out.

"Aladdin- hmph!"

She let out in surprise when Aladdin grabbed her and gave her a deep, loving kiss. It was as if he hadn't laid his eyes on her for years or something!

Meanwhile, Harith walked out after the other black headed guy. He looked over at his father and best friend. The latter raised an eyebrow at him while the former frowned. His father demanded:

"What happened in there?"

"It was nothing. I simply tested him." That caught the old man's attention. "I have accepted him, but I will continue to test him until I'm satisfied. Don't expect this coming week to be quiet. Come, Niall."

Niall shook his head in amusements at his best friend's attitude. A mysterious smile appeared on his lips.

"You have done more than that."

Harith snorted, but did not reply. The best friends left together.

After their departure, Aladdin finally let go of his fiancée. He had to keep a hold on her, though, since the kiss made her legs weak. She had this daze look on her face, which was quickly replaced with a concerned one.

"What was that for? What happened to you two in there?"

Aladdin shook his head. He brought her into a protective hug, dipping in to steal another kiss from those lips that he loved so much. He looked into her eyes, ones that were full of life and not dead like the ones back in that room.

"It doesn't matter."

He replied softly.

Aladdin realized, right then and there, just how precious she was to him and how much he has yet to learn. He would have to thank Harith for that later.

Though, he would have to hold onto that as he would be too busy cursing Harith for the upcoming week. When his wedding would arrive, and he got the official approval from his new brother-in-law, he nearly collapsed in relief.


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: Well, look at that! I'm not dead. Yay for me! (If I was dead, I would be somewhere far, far away, on a beach enjoying a drink.) Anyways, enjoy the story! :D**

 _That_ day came very soon.

The whole kingdom was busy to prepare for the huge celebration of their soon-to-be crowned Sultan, Harith. All shops were closed. Everybody, from the poorest to the richest, decorated the streets to greet their yet to be new ruler. Many had waited for this day to come, and now that it was here those people had bright smiles on their faces. Even the youngest of the kingdom, the children, helped with what they could. Though, only half of them truly understood how big and important this day was.

Back at the palace, it was an utter chaos. Nobody could figure out where their prince was and it appeared to be that his guest had disappeared as well.

Unbeknown to them, the two wizards put on a powerful notice-me-not spell on Harith's bedroom door so that they could get some peace and quiet from all the chaos that took place. More so the prince himself wanted some silence while he gathered his thoughts. Niall simply found the whole thing amusing and joined in on the right.

The two men sat outside in the balcony in their individual chairs. The weather was actually pretty nice compared to its usual self. The sun didn't bake them alive until they roasted on the inside. There were actual clouds that blocked some of the heat, so it made it a bit chilly at some points. The wind wasn't strong and dry, but rather had a bit of humid to it. Overall, it was the perfect day to seat outside and enjoy the sunshine. It was even better when they put the same notice-me-not spell on themselves, in case a certain couple decided to use a certain magic carpet in search for them.

"You know, you should prepare yourself for your ceremony."

Niall hummed out while he played a few tricks in the air with the use of his wand.

Harith lay upon his chair that acted much like a couch, with his hands grasped behind his head and his eyes were close.

"It'll take me only half an hour. I've got a good couple of hours before the ceremony will take place."

"Won't your family be worried about you 'disappearing'?"

The blond tried once more. His blue cloudy eyes stared at his best friend. The black headed man snorted.

"They shouldn't be too surprised that I pulled something like this."

After all, every time there was a big day with him put in the middle, he tended to disappear until the last second. He'd be far more surprised if they did get worried.

Harith breathed in and out quietly. Silence fell between the two best friends, so that was all he heard. His mind wondered off to something else- someplace almost forbidden. He thought back to what Niall had told him before they arrived to Agrabah. He remembered that day clearly. He remembered how at first he was horrified at what he heard. He remembered how he called the blond man a liar and isolated himself for weeks on end. He remembered how he was in such a great denial of his future that he neglected his usual schedule. It wasn't until his mentor found out what her apprentice's problem was that she knocked sense into him and made him realize something. It was bound to happen. Everybody had the same fate, no matter how hard they tried to run from it. It was just how life worked. After her long lecture, he went to apologize to Niall for being a brat and slowly, day by day, came to accept that he had no choice but to accept it.

The only good thing that happened for the last year, which made him both extremely happy and relieved, was that remaining family would be looked after. As much as he still disliked Aladdin, Harith knew that the new prince would be there for his family.

Out of nowhere, Harith felt something on his stomach, which traveled up to his armpits and finally down to his feet. An annoyed sound came from him. He opened one emerald eye and saw that Niall had his wand pointed at him with an innocent smile all the way from his chair. The prince groaned with annoyance. He rolled to his side, letting his back face the blond wizard.

"Stop that!"

"Come now, you need to cheer up and turn that frown upside down."

There was silence.

Harith turned to face Niall with a blank look.

"That has got to be the stupidest thing I've ever heard."

"Want me to do it aga-"

"No!" A quick responds was given. "You know how much I hate being tickled and it _doesn't_ work! Stop that you crazy man!"

To any other person, they'd be offended or even annoyed at the kind of responds that they were given. However, Niall clearly was far more amused than anything else. He knew how the Arabian man in front of him worked. After all, they haven't studied together for the last 7 years for nothing. The amusement was quickly faded away and replaced with a sympathetic softness.

"You know, thinking about that day won't do you any good. If it makes you feel better, tell your family."

Harith stared at the other for a long time. A shuffle came from him as he slowly threw his legs over the edge of the long chair and sat up to face the Scottish man properly. He spoke neutrally:

"You know I can't do that. They won't understand and listen-"

"Much like you did when I told you." Niall finished the sentence off in a slightly different manner, but with truthfulness. "Let me remind you that day will come very soon. Don't you want to at least spend some time with them before it arrives?"

Harith didn't speak. He looked at his right towards the bright and happy kingdom. Apart from that, all he saw was sand. Layers and layers of sand that continued on for a long distance as it covered the whole land. The sun in the distance began to set. Mid-afternoon was long gone.

It was nearly time for the ceremony.

"Of course I want to spend further time with them."

"Then, you should know that with us hiding, it won't help with anything."

Harith sighed deeply and stared back at his best friend.

"I know, I know, it's just... not now."

Niall eyes calculated the black headed prince while he chose his words carefully. Slowly, he stood up. For once, he spoke in all seriousness, much like that day.

"Remember this, my dear old friend, it will come very soon. It might be this year, or the next one, or even the one after that. Don't waste your time doing nonsense. Be with your family for as long as you can and treasure the moments."

The blond individual didn't wait for a responds. He walked inside to where Akilah nested comfortably.

Harith thought harshly about what he should do. He knew that he needed to do something, to explain to his family in some sort of a way what was to become of him. It was then that an idea came to his mind. He quickly got up and made his way to his work desk in his chambers. He grabbed a parchment and begun to write on it. Niall watched him in the corner of his eyes with a small sad smile. Akilah sung a beautiful melody to the blond wizard in front of her in worrisome. Her white feathers were stroked gently. Niall whispered to her with the same sad small smile that reached his eyes:

"Everything will turn out okay."

-ooOOoo-

"We present to you your new Sultan!"

The religious leader announced to the whole hall filled with nobles. Rested upon the throne was none other than Harith in his ceremonial clothes and turban that was decorated with jewels. He kept a neutral expression while everybody in the hall applauded in celebration for his succession. His father stood at the side with his sister, both smiled proudly at him. His brother-in-law stood with them, unsure of what to do so he settled with a small smile. Traditionally, the prince would only be crowned as the next Sultan when the previous one died. However, this time the kingdom had made an exception. The old Sultan has grown old and could no longer run his kingdom. So he handed over his throne to his only son and went into retirement.

Harith continued to watch as the nobles presented him with gifts. The gifts ranged from the finest of clothes to the latest weapons to jewels. He politely nodded to acknowledge their gifts, but still kept the look of neutral to not show favoritism.

Way at the back of the room, where the balcony was, stood Niall. The wizard watched his friend for a long time until he broke his eyes away to stare at the kingdom. Big camp fires were light up to brighten the kingdom in the night. He heard even from this distance the cheers, laughter and cries of happiness that came from the old kingdom. From what he understood, the ceremony lasted for a long time, so this should be interesting. Niall tilted his head upwards. The one strain of blond hair fell onto his face. His eyes rested upon a bright red star at the distance.

"Mars is unusually bright tonight."


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: Please check my page and check out how often I will be updating my multi-chapter stories as well as the polls that I might have up and running depending on when you're going to read this. Happy reading everyone! :)**

"I will miss you my dear friend. Have a safe journey."

Harith spoke to Niall whom had his flying broom with him. The blond smiled sadly at him.

"I'll miss you too. May you have a safe journey."

Both knew that the latter one had a different meaning to it, but neither spoke of it.

Today was the day that Niall had to return to Scotland, where his lover awaited for his return as well as his Mistress so that he could continue his final part of the training. It was decided that he'd travel the moment the sun was gone and everybody left for dinner. The wizard wore the same white clothes as the ones that he came to Agrabah in, but this time had a small suitcase (Which he shrunk) hung on his belt with the help of magic. In the meantime, Harith wore his sultan clothes that were far less fancy as those that he wore at the ceremony.

The ceremony had taken place a few days ago, and it felt rather strange that now Harith was called Sultan wherever he went. He was no longer Prince Harith. It would take some getting used to, but he knew that there was no point in it.

The two gave each other a final hug of goodbye and Niall left into the night.

Both of them knew that this would be the last that they saw each other.

Harith stared up at the starry night. No clouds were in sight. The only thing he saw were the bright twinkly stars that danced around the full moon that smiled down at him. It was then that the moon reminded him of something that made him nearly sneer up at it. He turned around to show his back to the subject and walked back into the palace towards one of the smaller dining rooms.

Once he arrived, Harith saw everybody ate their dinner with great happiness. His father had taken a different seat, which left the head spot for the Sultan open. It was strange once again to seat at the head of the table, but he shouldn't get too comfortable. It won't be long now. He put on a smile and took his seat, greeted by his family as well as the animals, Abu and Iago, and Genie. His father noticed someone was missing.

"Where's your friend?"

He asked his son. Harith answered while he grabbed some meat:

"He just left to return home." The whole table stopped with their talking and looked at him in shock. They haven't expected him to leave without saying goodbye. "He didn't want to disturb anybody and he needed to go back right away."

The Sultan explained further. While they were still disappointed, and voiced it as well, they had no choice but to accept it. Slowly, the whole table returned to their food and previous conversations.

The peace didn't last long.

The doors flunk open. The Genie quickly turned into a fly to rest on Aladdin's left shoulder. In stumbled a messenger with a letter in his hand. He bowed on his hands and knees to the family, whom noticed how shaken up he was. Not only that, but his clothes were ripped in a few places while burned or covered in blood in other.

"M-My S-Sultan, A-Al-K-Kamar d-d-declared w-wa-war."

The whole room stood still. Harith quickly got up and demanded:

"What do you mean declared war?!"

The messenger squeaked and presented to his Sultan the letter in his hand. The black headed Sultan snatched it from his hand. He ripped the thing opened and read what was said inside. A scowl appeared on his young face. He handed the letter to his father and turned to Razoul.

"Razoul!"

The head of the guards kneeled down in front of his Sultan.

"Yes Sultan?"

"Get me my Generals, _now_!"

Razoul bowed once more and left to do just that. The messenger right followed right behind him to get medical help once he got the permission to leave from his Sultan.

"Harith! You can't be serious-"

Jasmine stood up to knock some sense into her brother. She could not believe that he simply agreed to the declaration of war. Couldn't he at least try to make some sort of a peace treaty with them? She was rudely cut off by her brother:

"I can and I will. That Al-Kamar kingdom has always been cruel to us. I'm not surprised that they declared a war, especially when I was just crowned as the new Sultan."

"We can talk about a peace treaty!"

She tried once more, getting closer to her brother. He shook his head in decline. He looked down at her with sad emerald eyes. This might be it. He grasped her hands in his and brought them to his lips, placing a soft kiss on the back of them.

"They won't listen. I'm sorry, but I'm left with no choice. They attacked one of my people, which is a clear sign of how serious they are."

Jasmine tried to keep the hold on his hands, refusing to let go, but they slipped through. Harith left to the meeting to figure out what to do next. He wasn't about to go into this battle blinded, as this may or may not be it. The princess shook her head. She tried to hold back the tears that ran down her cheeks, but failed. She collapsed onto the floor and cried in her hands.

She just got her brother back. It felt like she was about to lose him again.

Forever

-ooOOoo-

It had been a week and the whole family stood outside the palace while the army stood just outside Agrabah's boundaries, as they waited for the departure. Harith wore his war clothes that were made for him very recently. He had his sword on one side of his hips while he hid a couple of knifes upon his person with only one exposed. All of the royal family looked extremely sad at the sight of their new head of the family departure to war.

Jasmine was the worst of them all.

She tried her best not to break down into tears once again, but it was so hard to because of just the thought of her beloved brother getting killed out there was just too much for her to handle. The two of them were inseparable since the beginning. Even when he went to another country to learn to control his powers, they were still hard to separate. Not even his actions to drive her suitors away had damaged their bond. Now, it was time for them to be truly separated, by war.

"Son, be careful and remember all that I've taught you."

The ex-Sultan told his son with a serious expression. He did not wish for his son to leave for war so soon, but he knew that he had no choice but to accept it. Harith nodded to his father in respect.

"I will father"

The new Sultan looked at Aladdin. The said man held Jasmine in his arms to give her emotional support. The two young men didn't say anything for a little while. Since that day, when Jasmine locked them in a room together, they grew more comfortable around one another and respected the other for their roles in the family. On personal level, they weren't the closest of friends, but they knew that they could trust each other, especially when it came to the other two royal family members. Harith told him with a frown of expectation:

"Look after my family for me. If not, I will come for your head."

A smile fought its way onto Aladdin's face, but he held it back. He replied with a promise:

"I will"

"I beg of you Harith, come back to us safe."

Jasmine begged her brother. Harith smiled down at her sadly. He nodded to Aladdin. Aladdin hesitantly let go of his fiancée, but made sure that they stayed at least in arm length in case she needed him again. The princess was glad for the freedom, as she took this opportunity to make her way to her brother. Her brother didn't waste another second and brought her into his arms. He hugged her tightly, in which she had done the same in return. Nothing was said between the two for a long time. All that was needed to be said was told in that one warm hug.

However, it wasn't going to end in silence. Harith had a different plan.

He lowered his lips to her ear and whispered something. Whatever he said, it caused Jasmine's eyes to widen in shock and disbelief at what she heard. She wasn't given enough time to react. With the last few seconds between the two, Harith kissed her forehead, let go of her only to get onto his war horse and ride away.

Jasmine shook her head to snap out of her shock. She screamed on top of her lungs in despair:

" _Harith!_ "

-ooOOoo-

"I'm sorry little sister."

Harith whispered into the wind with sorrow. At the sight of his men, he drew the horse into a stop. He announced their departure and they were gone into the evening sun.


	7. Chapter 7

Quietly, Jasmine made her way to Harith's chambers slowly, as if she had a huge iron ball attached to both her feet. The whole kingdom was quiet as it mourned. The black clothes draped on her body camouflaged with the darkness of the night. The only thing that was not black was her princess crown, but it did not reflect upon her feelings like the rest of the outfit. She met no one in the hallway. The only thing that she saw was the small light that came from the stars rather than the new moon. Her footsteps echoed throughout the hallways in a ghostly manner.

Finally, she faced an iron door that was the entrance to _his_ bedroom. Gently, she placed her hand on the frame. She felt the coldness pierce her skin like knifes, as if it warned her against her next action. Jasmine took a quiet deep breath and opened the right side of the door. The squeakiness from the lack of usage echoed like a scream into the silence. She walked inside only to be greeted by an empty bedroom. Not even her brother's familiar was there any longer, since she left to live with Niall per her brother's wishes, as they found out.

Jasmine walked over to his wooden work desk. When her eyes landed on it, she had the image of him right then and there. How he sat at the table to work on whatever homework or any other type of work related subject. His eyebrows would always knit in the same manner, to indicate his deep concentration. Sometimes he would glare at the work, almost as if it had insulted him in some way. The next minute, he would huff and grabbed a blank parchment to doddle on it with boredom. It was truly like he was there. How he looked up at her and raised an eyebrow before he smiled then chuckled.

 _'Bored again I see?'_

She heard him say in his deep amused voice. His green eyes sparkled in the same tone, but with a slight mischievous as he already came up with the next big prank the two of them could pull together on an unfortunate victim.

Jasmine reached up to touch his face, but when she blinked she realized that she touched nothing more than the air.

Jasmine felt her eyes burn with the need to cry, but she held the urge back. The princess sat down upon the same chair as her brother, her intertwined hands rested upon the dusty desk. She stared at a particular drawer of his wooden desk. She simply sat there and stared. She remembered back to that day, not even a year ago, when he whispered to her what he wanted her to do.

 _Once I'll leave this world, go to my chambers. There, you'll find in my work desk, in the largest drawer, a letter that'll explain everything. I love you little sister, don't ever forget that._

If he was there, she'd knock more than a few senses into his head. The problem was that he wasn't.

Jasmine took a deep shaky breath. She didn't waste another second as she grasped the handle of the bottom drawer and pulled it open. The drawer squeaked in protest, but didn't stop her. Inside, there was a single letter, barely visible from the lack of light. She took it out from the hollow drawer, opened it and started to read it.

 _Dear Jasmine and Father,_

 _When you'll read this letter, I'll be dead._

 _All I can say is that I'm sorry. I've been holding many things back from you two, and I can only hope that I'll be forgiven. I'll be taking many of those secrets with me to the grave, but I will tell you two important things._

 _One of them is that I found out about my true past, before I arrived to the past but as you know it as the present day._

 _Yes, I said arriving to the past. I found out that I was from the future. It sounds insane, I know, I thought so as well. I was brought into the 20th century by a group of wizards and witches, whom declared me to be Harry James Potter. I was, apparently, a wizard born in their time to two powerful people, my birth parents. Again, apparently, those parents died to protect me from an evil wizard by the name of Voldermort when I was a year old. After their deaths, I was sent to live with my leftover relatives for protection by a man named Albus Dumbledore._

 _Truth be told, my dear little sister and Father, I thought that this whole thing was a prank until I saw the non-magical side of the community. You wouldn't believe what I saw there! I saw so many strange things that could make our lives so much better. Can you imagine living in the palace with a machine that can make our home cold during the day and warm in the night, rather the other way around by the force of nature? I would have brought one back with me, if it wasn't for the fact that I needed elactracity, I believe it was called, something that won't happen for a long time._

 _I'm getting off tracks here. Back to what I wanted you two to know._

 _These wizards and witches expected me to fight this evil wizard that tried to kill me as an infant. They told me that when I'll defeat him, they'll send me back. So, I did as they told me. I trained and went to school with the rest of the students._

 _It took me a year to finally kill the man since he liked to stay in hiding._

 _My dear sister and Father, they lied to me._

 _Once I finished off the so called great evil Voldermort, those pathetic wizards and witches told me that they still needed me. That they won't let me go! I tried to tell them that I have a family and friends to return to, but they wouldn't listen to a word that I said. They saw it as I was wrong and they were right. Finally, fed up with them, I looked for my own solutions. I won't bore you with the details, but I found a way to return to you all. I left back to our time, when all of you lived in. I have deaged a couple of years, since I was 17 and not 21 when I left. So, neither of you would have noticed anything different about my appearance. I also made Niall swear to secrecy to not tell either of you what has happened, so don't blame him._

 _I'm sure you two want to know, if all of this is true, then how I went back to the past as a young child._

 _I think I have an explanation. I went to see what family Dumbledore put me with. They're the worst kind. I can't believe that I managed to survive with them. They're so… so… pathetically normal_ _in their time! It's rather scary. The husband is way bigger than any man we've ever seen, in weight I mean not in height. The wife reminds me of an animal and her shrieks are the worst! I swear my ears nearly bled when I heard her. Not only that, but my 'cousin' is the exact copy of his father. He looks like a pig with a blond wig. You two have to understand something. Magic is very protective of her children, and these people would have no doubt have abused me as a child since I have magic. When I really think about it, I remember some things like pain, loneliness and just the desire to feel loved. I'm very sure that those memories and feelings were from the time that I've been with them. After I met them, I believe that I must have gone through something so bad that Magic decided to transport me to the past where Father and Mother found me and took me as a son._

 _Then again, this is only a theory. I don't know how far Magic goes. In fact, nobody does._

 _The second thing that I kept from you two was the knowledge of my death before it even happened._

 _You see, Niall can see the future and has a way to predict what will take place through the use of the environment. He's pretty much a seer, though I like to think that he's an environmental seer rather than a plain one. I know, it sounds funny when you think about it, doesn't it? He still hits me over the head whenever I bring it up. Word of advice: Never call him an environmental seer._

 _Once I returned, he told me of my death that will occur in the next few years. I didn't believe him. I just came back from a near death experience from the future and went through a tough stage of the chance of never seeing any of you again. I was not prepared to hear something like that! After awhile, I slowly grew to accept it, as much as I hate to admit it._

 _Again, don't blame Niall for anything. He actually begged me to tell you two that I won't be with either of you for too long, since, apparently, I'll die in some sort of battle. However, I didn't listen to him and again had him swear to secrecy to not tell anyone apart from our Mistress, Lady Ravenclaw, whom knew of this already. I don't know of which battle I'll die at, so it's hard to prevent it from taking place._

 _I want to let you two know that I'm very sorry. I'm selfish. I wanted you two to continue to be oblivious and stay happy until whatever battle will come and I'll die at. Curse me. Disown me. Forget about me. I deserve anything and everything that you'll do. I couldn't bring myself to tell either of you because of my own selfishness. I just hope that one day you two can forgive me. I'll watch over you two, I promise._

 _Love,_

 _Harith._

Jasmine stared in disbelief at the letter. This time, she didn't stop the tears. She cried her heart out for the brother that she loves so much and who suffered so much without their knowing.

-ooOOoo-

 _5 years later_

A little boy with black hair and big brown eyes ran up to his mother, the wife of the Sultan. He cried out to her:

"Mom! Mom!"

A beautiful woman turned to look at him. She smiled at her son and kneeled down to his level.

"What is it Harith?"

Little Harith stopped sharply in front of her. He breathed heavily from all the running and pouted at her:

"I've been looking everywhere for you!"

The woman chuckled lightly. She picked him up to rest him on her hip while she answered:

"I was in a meeting along with your father. What is it?"

The little boy grasped onto her shoulders so not to fall. He didn't protest this time, like many other times in the past, about her lifting him up and 'treating him like a child' and that he was 'a big boy that didn't need to be lifted up anymore'. Instead, he asked her with naïve nature:

"I just learned that the last Sultan was Uncle Harith. What was he like?"

A strained smile appeared on the woman's face. She told him softly:

"He was a great man. He loved his family and friends very much."

"Where is he now?"

The woman felt a choke built up in her throat, but she shook off the need to cry at the thought of him. She had done enough crying over the years. It was time to move on. That was why she and her husband, Aladdin, named their son after him. It was to remember and honor him.

"He's watching over us, like the protective family man that he is."


End file.
